E85 is an abbreviation for an ethanol fuel blend of between 51% and 83% denatured ethanol fuel and gasoline or other hydrocarbon (HC) by volume. Availability All data August 2014 from the Department of Energy, e85prices.com, and E85refueling.com. Links go to each state's list of stations; see notes below for caveats. For each state the total number of facilities is given. As of August 1, 2014, there are now 3,354 stations in the U.S. selling E85. Minnesota has the largest number of E85 fuel locations of any U.S. state with over 450 stations, while Illinois has the second-greatest number of E85 pumps with about 290. Although Minnesota has the most E85 pumps they only represent a tiny fraction of the total fuel outlets. According to Oil Price Information Service (OPIS) there are approximately 140,000 publicly accessible retail gasoline stations in the United States. (All filling stations in Minnesota are however required to sell E10, a mixture of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline.) Constraints Concerns about rising gasoline prices and outside energy dependence led to a resurgence of interest in E85 fuel at the turn of the 21st century; for example, Nebraska mandated the use of E85 in state vehicles whenever possible in May 2005. Similarly, whereas selling any fuel containing more than 10% ethanol is currently illegal in some states, this is rapidly changing. For example, Florida proposed changing state law to permit the sale of alternative fuels such as E85 at an October 7, 2005 meeting, and held public hearings on October 24. Before higher level blends of ethanol were finally legalized, only county, state, and Federal fleet vehicles could purchase E85 in Florida - from only 3 pumps in the state. Several other states have similar laws that prevent the sale of E85 to the general public. The expected general outcome, though, is the rapidly widening acceptance of E85 sales to the general public in all of the United States. E85 requires additional blending, special pump graphics and labeling, and has numerous other legal and logistical hurdles to overcome. As a result, while there are 3,354 E85 refueling stations in the United States as of August 1, 2014, this only represents approximately 2.4% of refueling stations nationwide according to data from the Oil Price Information Service. As a consequence, E85 is difficult to find for some drivers. As recorded in a Consumer Choice Report Card in July 2014,